Voice of the People, Jan. 17

January 17, 2012

Third parties

In a recent column, Paul E. Peterson disparaged third parties, arguing that they are "illicit, almost unconstitutional" ("Resisting the song of the third-party siren," Perspective, Jan. 8). Nothing could be further from the truth. In Federalist Paper 10, James Madison, author of the U.S. Constitution, argued that the only effective remedy for divisive factions was a proliferation of parties rather than an artificial restriction on their number.

Madison said, "Liberty is to faction what air is to fire, an aliment without which it instantly expires. But it could not be less folly to abolish liberty, which is essential to political life, because it nourishes faction, than it would be to wish the annihilation of air, which is essential to animal life, because it imparts to fire its destructive agency."

By arguing for the suppression of third parties, Peterson reveals himself to be completely at odds with Madison, who sought above all else to restrain the undemocratic impulses of majority factions, i.e. major parties, as the most invidious to personal liberty.

In reference to the "Meander to the top" (Editorial, Jan. 8), I am pleased to report that despite not receiving a federal Race to the Top grant for school reform, education in Illinois is racing to the top. Our Illinois proposal to Race to the Top was apparently too far-reaching for the Washington bureaucrats to appreciate. It will put Illinois ahead of other states in developing a world-class workforce, reducing dropouts and making Illinois a magnet to attract new businesses.

What is different about the Illinois proposal, which we call the Illinois Pathways Initiative?

We base our strategies on the Harvard report "Pathways to Prosperity," whichare: integrating academic and vocational education, work-based learning for as many students as possible, and, most important, involving the private sector to work with educators.

It is essential to bring employers into education to form public-private partnerships so that they can help establish the content and the certifications for the dozens of new and challenging careers ahead. There are many jobs available that cannot be filled because of a shortage of highly skilled employees in some areas. Employers are needed to provide internships, work-based learning and adult mentors to help students learn about new career opportunities.

We are finding bipartisan support for these reforms, and already a number of schools in Illinois are starting to implement these initiatives.

— Blouke Carus, chairman, Carus Corp., Peru, Ill.

Occupy values

A recent letter about the Occupy movement stated that "you occupy because you are anti-military, anti-capitalism, anti-government."

Someone who advocates peace is not anti-military. Someone who advocates for social justice is not anti-capitalism. Someone who thinks our politicians are not working for the common good is not anti-government. Occupy Wall Street is mainly protesting social and economic inequality, corporate greed and corruption.

The protesters' main slogan, "We are the 99 percent," refers to the difference in wealth and income growth in the U.S. between the wealthiest 1 percent and the rest of the population. That growing disparity upsets me as well. Does that make me anti-capitalism? No. It makes me fed up with corporate greed and its hold over many of our politicians.

— Cathy Truesdale, Wheaton

Santorum values

Tribune columnist Steve Chapman faults Rick Santorum ("Rick Santorum's moral delusions," Commentary, Jan. 8) for suggesting that the Boston priest sex scandal came about because Massachusetts is a liberal, academic state, but then goes on to draw his own erroneous conclusions.

It is an elementary principle of statistical reasoning that when two events or conditions co-exist, one does not necessarily cause the other.

Yet Chapman writes, "Mississippi has by far the highest rate of church attendance in America … but Mississippians are far more likely to be murdered than other Americans." People in Vermont "are the most likely to skip church" but "its murder rate is about one fourth as high as the rest of the country." And again, "Almost every one of the most religious states suffers from more teen pregnancy than the norm."

What about other possible causes of these ills, particularly socioeconomic factors such as income or education?

It may well be that the higher Mississippi murder rates are related to higher levels of poverty and have little to do with religion.

The same may be true of affluence or higher levels of education as they relate to lower murder or teen pregnancy rates in other states. Perhaps Chapman is aware of well-designed studies that support his contentions and control for these other factors. If so, he has not informed us.